Duda comments on Polish farmers' protests on Ukraine border
President of Poland Andrzej Duda (Photo: Getty Images)
What is happening at the border is a certain conflict of interests between Polish farmers, who fear for their existence, and agricultural producers in Ukraine. The parties are trying to resolve this issue, according to a statement by President of Poland Andrzej Duda in an interview with Ukrainian Radio.
"We are trying to solve this problem," Duda says.
In his opinion, there is a certain conflict of interests between Polish farmers, who fear for their existence, and agricultural producers in Ukraine.
The Polish president adds that "these protests at the moment, one might say, have spread practically throughout the European Union" because "farmers fear a huge influx of Ukrainian agricultural products into the markets of EU countries."
"This is indeed a complex problem because the problem with Ukrainian food has existed from the very beginning. It started because of Russian aggression against Ukraine. Because remember, it is Russian aggression against Ukraine that is to blame, not someone else. If there hadn't been Russian aggression against Ukraine, this problem wouldn't have arisen at all. The problem is that Russia attacked Ukraine," he notes.
Duda emphasizes that the Poles have the right to protest, and if it is lawful, the authorities will defend it. At the same time, he stresses that the border blockade is only a decision of the farmers, not the Polish government.
The Polish president also expresses hope that the conflict would be resolved peacefully.
"We had protests by drivers, trade unions, as well as truck drivers' associations some time ago. And this protest was stopped precisely as a result of negotiations with the authorities, as a result of agreements reached in the Poland-Ukraine-drivers tripartite formula. I hope that this issue can also be resolved in the same way, peacefully, through negotiations," he emphasizes.
At the same time, Duda emphasizes that his country will continue to support Ukraine in resisting Russian occupiers.
Border blockade
Earlier Polish farmers announced that starting from February 20, they would block all border crossing points with Ukraine. This also includes access roads to railway stations and seaports.
On February 9, Polish farmers blocked three crossing points on the border with Ukraine, causing disruptions in the movement of trucks and trains. Later, it became known that they unblocked one of the border crossing points with Ukraine - the Shehyni-Medyka checkpoint.
On February 12, Polish farmers blocked two more checkpoints on the border with Ukraine. They also continued their protest at the Medyka-Shehyni checkpoint.
Additionally, Polish protesters have begun imposing stricter restrictions on traffic at the border with Ukraine.
For updates on the situation at the Ukraine-Poland border, read RBC-Ukraine's coverage.
